What Your Birth Order Says About You

Are you the eldest, the middle child, or the bunso? Let us look into the various stereotypes of your position in the family and how you can break free from these!

The Eldest

Eldest children usually grow up to be natural leaders with a take-charge personality and are often responsible and success-oriented. But these good qualities can also result in perfectionism and resentment toward younger siblings they always feel accountable for.

Teach (not just tell) your younger siblings to handle their own affairs, and slowly start to delegate family responsibilities. Learn to trust your siblings and you may be surprised with how capable they can be in doing tasks. Most importantly, let go an allow others to take care of you. After all these years, you deserve it!

The Middle

The usual stereotype of the middle child is being kulang sa pansin. But many middle children have flourished in life precisely because they needed to try harder to stand out. In fact, feeling neglected by their families often motivates middle children to be more sociable and outgoing. They are also more aware of the moods and needs of others, leading many of them to hold the role of peacekeeper since they can be obsessed with fairness.

If you are a middle child who always think of yourself in relation to the rest of your family, or if you have hard time making decisions because you take each family member into consideration, perhaps it’s time you forged your identity outside your family. Experience what it’s like to be an individual that’s not part of a greater whole, and embrace the who that you are. You will still be connected to your family even if they aren’t in your head all the time.

The Youngest

Youngest children tend to be less responsible and aware of what’s going on. They are also allowed to be more creative, and know how to endear themselves to others. They are more likely to take risks than their older siblings but are sometimes not equipped to deal when things go wrong. Youngest children are sometimes very competitive because they don’t like feeling “left behind.”

If you’re tired of being treated like a baby, stop acting like one. Though no fault of your own, you might have missed out on honing fundamental skills such as organization, planning, and decision-making. But don’t fret! You just have to think and make it happen. Don’t feel frustrated if it seems too complicated. Remember, if your older siblings can do it, you can too!